Your Drinking Water

Where does your community’s water come from?

Whether you live in the city or the country, the water that comes from your tap is taken from a river system. If you live in this watershed or in the cities of Beverly, Salem, or Lynn, your water comes from the Ipswich River, either directly or through groundwater wells that divert water from the river.

The Ipswich River supplies water to Beverly, Danvers, Hamilton, Ipswich, Lynn, Lynnfield, Middleton, North Reading, Peabody, Salem, Topsfield, Wenham and Wilmington. Private wells in part of Boxford, a number of golf courses and other private businesses also draw water from the Ipswich River basin.

Residential water use has a major effect on the river’s health. Did you know that the amount of water needed to restore natural flows in the river – an estimated 14.4 million gallons per day – is about equal to the estimated amount used for lawn watering?

The state advises residential water consumption be limited to 65 gallons a day per person. Shockingly, almost 100 Massachusetts communities are exceeding state guidelines for water usage; the average daily usage in many communities ranges from 75 to 167 gallons per person per day. Saving water saves energy and money, helps restore our local rivers to health and makes the region’s water supplies more reliable during droughts. Here are some ways to use water efficiently.

*Figures in this column represent the number of millions of gallons per day (mgd) that may be withdrawn from the Ipswich River Basin.

**Lynn is authorized to withdraw an average of 5.31 mgd from Dec 1-May 31 only. The authorized withdrawal has been annualized to allow calculation/comparison of average year-round withdrawals. Lynn’s additional permitted volumes are adjusted in the same way.

***Reading stopped pumping water from their Ipswich wells in late 2006. Reading’s wells are now available as an emergency supply only. See our Fall 2006 newsletter (pdf) for a story on this important decision to restore flow to the Ipswich River.

More about Your Drinking Water

Wenham Lake Reservoir

Public water supplies use either water stored in reservoirs or pumped from underground by wells. Both types of water withdrawals reduce flows in the river and leave less for fish and other river-life, as well as navigation, recreation and other uses of our rivers.

However, the timing and amounts of the water withdrawals result make a big difference in how significant the impacts on the river are. In the Ipswich River Watershed, groundwater withdrawals by streamside wells,especially in summer, have a very large impact and can reduce flows to a trickle or even dry up nearby streams and the river. Storage reservoirs are usually filled up in the winter and spring during higher flows, although they too sometimes reduce river flows below safe levels, especially when the winters and springs are drier than usual.

What is the water used for? In the home, the water we drink makes up less than a gallon a day, but we also need water for showers, baths, cooking, cleaning, dishwashing, laundry and toilets. A large amount of water is used outdoors, especially in summer, for lawn watering, car-washing and pool-filling. A household with very efficient showerheads, toilets and appliances can use 20 gallons per person per day or less — if they don’t water the lawn regularly. (This can save energy and money as well.) There are many industrial uses of water, and of course agriculture can use a lot of water, depending on the crop and irrigation methods. Towns and cities need water for fire fighting, municipal buildings, water treatment and other uses. (Tips for saving water)

How are water withdrawals regulated? Drinking water quality is regulated under various state and federal laws. The Water Management Act is the state law that governs how much water can be taken from our rivers by public water suppliers or large private water withdrawals. The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is in charge of carrying out this law. The law requires “reasonable water conservation” and “reasonable protection” of a number of interests, including water quality, fisheries, wetlands, water-recreation, navigation, economic development and water supply. Some of these interests could conflict with others. DEP has broad discretion in what reasonable protection of these interests means, and has not yet developed any criteria for these requirements. DEP must also achieve a balance among competing water withdrawals and uses, and must “preserve the water resource itself.” Again, DEP has significant discretion as to what all this means. (Learn about our work to keep enough water in the river for people and nature.)